About Devi Cherian

Devi Cherian is a widely read columnist with trenchant views, a social activist with a conscience that ignores any partisan line, and a causarati with enviable creative energy. Hailing from a family that has been in politics and social work since three generations, Devi has a good knowledge of national politics and has keen interest in journalism focused on social and political issues. This has made her a respected voice on the subjects in influential circles, leveraging a vast network of well-wishers to help political workers and the common citizen, irrespective of caste and region. Devi’s columns are published in premier national publications like The Pioneer, The Tribune, The Asian Age, Punjab Kesari (the largest selling newspaper in North India printed in Hindi, Punjabi & Urdu), Outlook magazine and Punjab Times (the only International magazine from India).

As a result of her efforts to address the social & political issues on many platforms (national & international), she was honored with the prestigious ‘Amar Shaheed Lala Jagat Narayan Memorial Award’ in 2012. Her activism and social intervention roles, both via media and NGO got her the Rajiv Gandhi Rashtriya Ekta Samaan, Journalism Award in 2006. This revered award is conferred upon men & women for their outstanding contributions to national integration. In 2006, she was also honored with the ‘Sarv Sresth Suputri’ ("most honour-worthy daughter") award, the highest award recognized by the government of Himachal Pradesh, for her efforts & commitment for women's empowerment & girl child education.

She spends significant portion of her time, in working with NGOs, particularly those that are focused on the area of disabled children. She is a patron of Deepalaya, the prominent New Delhi organization which works for the education of orphaned children. Devi is a trustee on the board of Action India, an NGO that works in the area of providing relief to those afflicted with AIDS.

Devi has held various positions over time, which includes being appointed as a Consultant by United Nations Ops at New Delhi. She spends a lot of her time at educational institutions, as she is on the board of various colleges at Delhi University and also delivers lectures at various prestigious schools in the country. Recently, she has been appointed the Member of Board of Directors for Himachal Pradesh Tourism and Civil Aviation.

She is married to India's image guru Dilip Cherian who is founding partner of Perfect Relations, South Asia’s largest communications consultancy. They have two children, a daughter Afsana, who worked with UNDP and currently works as the Consultant for MNCs on corporate social responsibility and son Chiragh, who is the Director of Digital Public Relations at Perfect Relations.